'Why would I hurt my own son?': Regina manslaughter trial hears father's interview with police
It was a tearful start to the third day of Catlin Goodwill’s manslaughter trial.
The accused, along with some family members in the gallery, sat crying as court watched a video recording of Goodwill’s interview with police the day after he had been arrested and charged with manslaughter.
Goodwill, 33, is accused of causing the death of his three-month-old son in October 2017.
Nearly two years later, the father was arrested and charged in August 2019.
Regina Police Service SSgt. Pierre Beauchesne, who was one of the primary investigators in the case, testified at the trial on Wednesday. He led court through a recorded interview he conducted with Goodwill the day after his arrest.
The baby’s mother had left him home alone with Goodwill the day he died. Goodwill admitted to police that he was the only one who held the boy that day, even after the mother returned home.
“He was in my care and I was watching him,” Goodwill told police during the interview.
Autopsy results show the infant died from blunt force trauma to the head. An expert witness previously testified that the injury would have taken place a few hours before the death.
“There would be no other person in contact or who would have been able to be in contact with (the infant) to cause that death and it was not natural,” Beauchesne told Goodwill in the interview.
“A stranger didn’t just come into the house and do this.”
Beauchesne told court police operated on a couple of different theories during the investigation.
One theory was Goodwill hit the baby’s head on a swinging seat when the father placed his son back down after changing his diaper. Shaken Baby Syndrome was another theory.
One of the neuropathologists who consulted on the autopsy previously testified the infant’s injuries were consistent with Shaken Baby Syndrome. However, he said that could not be confirmed.
Beauchesne interviewed Goodwill for about 40 minutes. In that time, the father could not give an explanation for his son’s injuries.
“I didn’t do nothing to hurt him,” he said. “Why would I hurt my own kid? Why would I hurt my own son?”
During cross-examination, defence lawyer Bruce Campbell questioned why it took police nearly two years to lay charges against Goodwill.
Beauchesne told Campbell “death investigations sometimes take several months if not years.”
The investigator said he did not receive the final autopsy report until December 2018. He told court it then takes time to review the documents and information before making the decision to lay a charge.
The Crown called its final witness in the case Wednesday afternoon.
Dr. Juliet Soper is a paediatrician who works in the area of child maltreatment. Police asked for her expert opinion during their investigation.
During testimony, Soper agreed that the baby’s head trauma was likely caused by an acceleration and deceleration motion similar to shaking or whiplash received in a car crash.
She added that the brain bleed could have occurred without impact. However, the bruise found on the back of the infant’s skull suggests there was some sort of impact to the boy’s head.
“Any bruising of a baby this age raises a question of how it happened,” Soper told court, adding the infant could not have caused these injuries on its own.
According to Soper, children with fatal head injuries often show symptoms immediately, including loss of consciousness.
“Any injury that results in the child dying is extremely significant. It’s the worst outcome,” Soper said.
“If you’ve suffered a fatal brain injury it would be obvious to the people looking after you.”
Soper told court she could not conclusively determine a timeline or cause of injury based on the information she had reviewed.
The defence is expected to call a neuropathologist as its only expert witness Thursday afternoon.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
RCMP uncovers plot to sell drones and equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a ploy to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.